11/21/2013

JONESBORO -- On Thursday, Dec. 5, at 5 p.m. the Bradbury Gallery will present the “Fall 2013 Senior Exhibition” featuring graduating students from the Arkansas State University Department of Art. Anthony Griego, JoAnna Jarosz, and Michale Riggs will exhibit recent works of art including drawings, paintings and mixed media projects.

The exhibition continues through Saturday, Dec. 14. Admission to the reception and to Bradbury Gallery is free.

This December Griego will earn a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in studio art with an emphasis in painting. He is currently president of the Art Student Union where he has organized and participated in many extracurricular activities. One of these events was the “Art Student Union Juried Exhibition” where his artwork received the honor of first place. His work has also been seen in the 2011 and the 2012 “Art Student Union Juried Exhibition” and the “Tropical Trash Student Exhibition,” all held in the Fine Arts Center Gallery at A-State.

Commenting on his work, Griego states, “Both powerful and powerless, these men reflect both my inner conflict and appreciation for the ideal male form. Working from photo collages, I choose to depict subjects as they choose to represent themselves – as objects, rather than as individuals. This body of work parodies masculinity, archetypes and the gay/queer standard by disassembling, rearranging and removing, in order to examine the twenty-first century male body.

After graduation Griego plans to attend graduate school and further his studies in painting.

Jarosz received two Department of Art scholarships while attending Arkansas State University. She currently holds an Associate of Arts degree from ASU-Mountain Home, and next May will receive her Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in art education from ASU. Her work has been seen in “What the...” an exhibition held in the Fine Arts Center Gallery and in “Collection” and “Monument,” both shown in the Dean B. Ellis Library Gallery on the A-State campus.

In her artist’s statement she says, “I have always been captivated by eyes. I love how unique they are in color and in shape and in their ability to depict personality and emotion. Painting has always come easily to me, thus my body of work has logically developed into a combination of these two.”

Jarosz will complete her teaching internship next semester and then plans to teach art at an area high school.

Riggs’ pop culture-inspired paintings, drawings, and sculptures have been featured in several group exhibitions including “Monument,” “Fear,” “Dreamland,” and “Collection,” all held in the Dean B. Ellis Library Gallery. She also has participated in the 2013 “Art Student Union Juried Exhibition,” “Topical Trash,” and “What the…,” held in the Fine Arts Center Gallery.

Riggs is a member of the A-State Art Educators Club. In the spring of 2014, she will complete her teaching internship and graduate with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in art education. After graduation she plans to pursue a teaching career at a public school in secondary education.

According to Riggs, “I feel I was born in the wrong decade. My work references movies, music, and people that were popular before I was born. This is a result of growing up in a household where ‘The Who’ and John Hughes reigned supreme. I developed a passion for the popular culture of my parents’ youth and that inspired this body of work.”

Gallery hours are noon to 5 p.m., Tuesday through Saturday, 2 to 5 p.m. on Sunday, and by appointment. The gallery is closed on Monday.

The exhibition and reception are open to the public. For additional information please visit www.bradburygallery.com or contact the Bradbury Gallery at (870) 972‑3471.